Easier
by BuffyVerseSpuffyRealm
Summary: An alternative ending to Buffy and Spike's reunion in After Life, Episode 3, Season 6 after she's been resurrected! Lots of fluff! The way their reunion should've ended and without the interruptions from Xander,Willow,Anya,Tara and Dawn.


**"Yeah? I've seen the bloody bot before. Didn't think she'd patch up -" There was something. Something in Buffy's eyes that made him stop. A blink of pain. Sorrow. An emotion that he knew the Buffybot wasn't capable of. He couldn't quite put his finger on it but he recognised it. He stared at her for a few seconds, taking in her mesmerising yet dulled features. Her dusty, dirty hair. It wasn't the way he remembered it. Not those golden locks dipped in sunshine that he always looked forward to seeing. Her tired, darkened eyes which had lost their brilliant shade of hazel brown never left his as she gently stepped down the stairs. **

**"She's kind of - she's been through a lot with the - death. But I think she's okay" replied Dawn, suddenly breaking the silence. Buffy quickly reached for her blouse and buttoned it up frantically but still not speaking a word. **

**Spike was completely zoned out, not hearing anything Dawn was saying, captivated by the beauty that he never thought he'd see again. **

**"Spike? Are you okay?" Dawn asked anxiously.**

**"Wha -". Spike stumbled over his words as he finally let himself come back down to the earth that he didn't think he was living in anymore. **

**"What did you do?", he replied softly after a few heart wrenching seconds that felt like hours. His piercing demon eyes never left Buffy's. **

**"Me? Nothing!", squeaked Dawn. Spike eventually drew his eyes away from the slayer's, only to notice her hands. Red, raw and swollen clutched tightly against her chest. **

**"Her hands" Spike murmured.**

**The still silent slayer dropped her injured hands and hid them behind her away from Spike's view. She hung her head to escape his stare. Dawn looked at her sister's hands.**

**"Um...I was gonna fix 'em. I don't know how they got like that", **

**An expression of shock started to form on the 128 year old's face but he managed to calm himself before anyone would notice. **

**"I do. Clawed her way out of a coffin that's how." Spike turned to Buffy again. "Isn't that right?"**

**"I..", murmured Buffy. Spike felt a wave of relief wash over him as he heard her soft sweet voice again for the first time in months. Tears welled up in his eyes and he wanted more than anything to let everything out that he had been keeping locked away for over 5 months. He told himself not to let his feelings surface for Dawn's sake. For Buffy's. **

**"That's what I had to do", she trembled. **

**"Done it myself" Spike whispered, lost again in a trance. Buffy began to look uncomfortable so he snapped out of it.**

**"We'll take care of you. C'mere."**

**Buffy, her arms still tightly at her sides, arrived at the bottom of the stairs and didn't flinch as Spike reached to put his arm gently around her. It was actually him who pulled away from her. All the times he'd wanted to hold her, comfort her and now he was too scared to even touch her. Him? Scared?**

**"Get me some stuff, mercurochrome, bandages" he instructed Dawn.**

**"Ok" mumbled Dawn as she approached the door to the kitchen. Spike guided the clearly shaken slayer to the couch and sat her down. He knelt down in front of her and picked up her swollen hands. He brushed a delicate finger across her wounds and then he caught her eye after what seemed like an eternity. **

**Nothing else mattered right then. He forgot about the pain of losing her. The loneliness he felt when she wasn't around that he had never felt before in the 100+ years he had lived(if you could call it living). Not even when Dru left. **

**"How long was I gone?" Buffy trembled.**

**"147 days yesterday. Um -148 today. Except today doesn't count does it?". Spike tried to give a reassuring smile but Buffy was still stuck in her zombie like state. She was completely still. He could barely hear her breathing. The pair sat there for a few seconds, their eyes not straying from each others. Without thinking, Spike blurted out,**

**"How long was it for you? Where you were?". Buffy looked shocked and Spike panicked. What if he'd upset her? What if he was being too pushy? **

**"Longer" she croaked. Spike knew this was a subtle warning not to intrude any further so he quickly tried to think of something different to talk about. Nothing came to him. All he could think about was questions about what had happened to Buffy wherever she had been, how he could help her. He was willing to do anything he could. He could see her perfect but sad eyes shining in the light. He soon realised that she was on the verge of tears.**

**Before he knew it, a warm tear had dripped down his check without him realising. Buffy had been momentarily distracted so Spike quickly wiped away the shiny streak on his cheek. Buffy quickly spun her head back round to him after she realised that he'd pulled his hand away from hers. **

**"Can you stay?". She struggled to get the words out, not believing she was actually asking Spike this. **

**"I'd kind of like to be around someone who knows what it's like to be dead". Spike let out a muffled laugh and hung his head for a few seconds, not sure if the laugh was appropriate.**

**"Sure pet" he said as he gave her a smile that could melt anyone's heart. She tried to give a half hearted smile but struggled. He reached out and tucked a piece of long silky hair behind her ear that had come loose from her hair tie. He slowly moved his hand away from her face but not before touching her cheek with the side of his hand. Strangely, she didn't flinch or turn away. She just sat there, sort of mesmerised by Spike's affection towards her.**

**"Can I get you anything?" Spike asked after a few moments had passed.**

**"No I'm okay", she replied distantly. "I think I just need some air". Spike got up and helped her to her feet. She stumbled and lost her footing as she stood up and Spike reached out to catch her. **

**Before they knew it, the pair were close enough than they'd ever been before. Spike's arm was around her waist supporting her after her fall and her hand was on his shoulder. They gazed longingly at each other for a few seconds when Buffy began to turn away. **

**As she turned towards the door, he got a whiff of her scent. Memories came flooding back of how much he craved it. That tangy sweetness when she entered the room. The feeling of relaxation when he knew she was near. **

**A gust of wind brought him back to reality as Buffy opened the door and went outside. He wanted to follow her, keep an eye on her, make sure that she was okay but he realised that she needed time.**

**20 minutes had gone by and Buffy was still outside so Spike cautiously approached the doorway to find her huddled up on the porch step, arms wrapped around her fragile chest. Spike grabbed a blanket from a nearby chair, and slowly approached the slayer. He made her jump as he place the blanket around her shoulders.**

**"Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you love", Spike apologised as he knew she must've still been jumpy after what she'd been through. She looked at him but didn't say anything. **

**He sat down on the porch next to her but kept a little distance between them. Buffy was suddenly in floods of tears, her head in her hands. Spike turned towards her, only just restraining himself from putting an arm around her. He didn't know if she wanted comforting right now. He sat there for a minute or so. He couldn't bare to see her so upset. So lost. "Screw it!", he thought and slid up next to her and put an arm around her shoulders. To his surprise, she lent her head on his shoulder still weeping. **

**When he'd tried to comfort her in the past, she'd never turned to him even when she was at her most vulnerable. **

**He rested his chin on her head and breathed in her sweet scent. Even through all of this, he found the strength to stay strong and held back the tears. He placed a gentle but tender kiss on her forehead and whispered muffled words into her hair.**

**"Whatever it takes. Whatever I have to do to make you feel safe again. I'll do it". **

**Buffy and Spike were completely oblivious to the fact that Dawn was standing in the doorway behind them. She didn't have the heart to disturb them. She realised now that Spike truly did love her sister and that Buffy needed him around. **

**As Dawn, left them in peace, Spike began stroking the slayer's hair, his head still leaning against her own. Buffy had stopped crying now but her face was still streamed with tears. She closed her eyes, taking in the sounds of the crickets, the gentle blowing of the wind and every now and then Spike's words of comfort. The biggest comfort in all of this, was knowing that she'd discovered a side to him that she never knew existed. She was glad he was here. Really glad. Life might just be a little easier with him here...**


End file.
